Weedless fishing-tackle.



No. 824,739. PATENTED JULY 3, 1906.

*H. I PHELPS.

WBEDLESS FISHING TACKLE. APPLIGATION FILED AUG. 23, 1905.

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UNITED STATES PATENT oEEIoE.

WEEDLESS FISHING-TACKLE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 3, 1906.

Application filed August 23) 1905. Serial No. 275,503.

To ctZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, HERBERT L. PHELPs, a citizen of the United States ofAmerica, and a resident of Chicago, Illinois, have invented a certainnew and useful Improvement in WVeedless Fishing-Tackle, of which thefollowing is a specification.

My invention relates to hooks, spoons, lures, and other devices whichare designed to be secured to the end of a fish-line and which arelikely to catch in the weeds. For example, a spoon of the well-knownrotary character is likely to become entangled in the weeds and to thenrefuse to revolve around the wire or stem on which it is mounted,thereby practically destroying its effectiveness as a lure for certainkinds of fish, and the entanglement of a hook in the weeds is of coursea thing to be avoided, if possible.

Generally stated, the object of my invention is the provision of animproved, simplifled, and highly-efficient arrangement for enabling afisherman to troll in the weeds with considerably less danger of hishook or tackle becoming entangled in the weeds than would be the casewith the ordinary arrangement.

Special objects of my invention are to pro vide an improved form ofguard which can be embodied in the fishing-tackle and which can beemployed for guarding either a hook, a spoon, or other devices of thefishing-tackle against becoming entangled in the weeds, to provide aform of guard which will effectively prevent the tackle from becomingentangled in the weeds and which will at the same time accomplish itsintended purpose without interfering with the effectiveness orefficiency of the different devices of the fishing-tackle and withoutfrightening away the fish, and to provide certain details and featuresof improvement tending to increase the general efficiency andserviceability of a Weedless fishing-tackle arrangement of thisparticular character.

To the foregoing and other useful ends my invention consists in mattershereinafter set forth and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective of an ordinaryfish-bait arrangement involving a guard embodying the principles of myinvention. Fig. 2 is a detail longitudinal section of the said guard.Fig. 3 is an end view of the said uard. Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig.3, but showing a guard composed of a larger number of wires.

As thus illustrated, my invention comprises a guard A, composed of ahead or hub portion a and a number of Wires 0/. These wires flare orspread in a rearward direction and converge toward and are joinedtogether by the hub a, and the said hub can be secured to the stem orwire B, to the rear end of which is secured the rotary spoon C. To theeX- treme end of the wire B an ordinary fishhook D or any other suitablehook arrangement can be secured in a well-known manner. The fish-line Emay be secured to the other end of the wire B. With this arrangement theartificial fish-bait arrangement can be drawn through the Water and eventhrough weedv places with comparatively less danger of either the hookor the spoon becoming entangled in the weeds. The wires a separate orbrush the weeds apart, thereby allowing the spoon and hook to passwithout catching or becoming entangledthat is to say, the liability ofthe tackle becoming entangled in the weeds is precluded or greatlyreduced.

In Figs. 1, 2, and 3 the guard consists of only four wires. In Fig. 4,however, the guard A comprises siX wires a In this way it will be seenthat the guard may comprise as many wires as are necessary for differentkinds of tackle and according to the size desired for the guard.

It will be readily understood that my im proved guard can be combinedwith fishingtackle of any suitable known or ap roved character. It maybe used for mere y protecting a lure, such as the spoon shown, or it maybe used for protecting a fish-hook. As illustrated, it protects therotary spoon C, and also of course affords more or less protection forthe hook which trails immediately in the rear of the spoon. The spoon Cis, it will be seen, a spinner or artificial lure. The same is arrangedto rotate upon the wire B at a point immediately in rear of theguardwires a, which latter have their ends rigidly or fixedly secured tothe wire B. Suitable fish-hook means, such as the hook D, are flexiblysecured to the end of the wire B at a point in rear of the said spinner.

What I claim as my invention is- 1. In fishing-tackle, the combinationof a fish-line E a straight wire B suitably secured to the end of saidline, rearwardly-separating or divergent guard-wires (1 having theirforward ends rigidly or fixedly secured to the said wire B, and havingtheir outer ends curved outwardly, a spinner 0r lure rotatably bowedinwardly between its ends, substailn3 mounted upon the Wire B at a pointimmetially as and for the purpose set forth.

diately in rear of said guard-Wires a, and Signed by me at Chicago,Illinois, this 26th fish-hook means flexibly secured to the rear day ofJuly, 1905.

end of said Wire B, substantially as set forth.

2. In fishing-tackle, a guard for the same, HERBERT PHELPS said guardcomprising the Wires a secured to- Witnesses: gether at their forwardends and bent out- SARAH LEWIS,

Wardly at their rear ends, eaohwire bent or ALBERT J. SAUsER.

